Research for Agriculture, the Environment,
Consumers, Families and Communities

The Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station is the research component of the Division of Agriculture. AAES is the primary research support agency for Arkansas farmers and ranchers, food processors, related industries and consumers. Research topics also include issues that impact the families, communities and natural resources associated with Arkansas agriculture.

We conduct basic and applied research at five research and extension centers and six research stations around the state, as well as at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville; the University of Arkansas at Monticello; the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff; and Arkansas State University, Jonesboro. AAES research discoveries allow Arkansas farmers, businesses, communities and families to adopt new technologies and products, and adapt to changes in regulations. Our research personnel maintain partnerships with state, federal and international agencies and professional societies that connect us to worldwide communities of scientists.

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News

A $5 million gift from Tyson to the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture will significantly finance the new $16.3 million Don Tyson Center for Agricultural Sciences, with construction scheduled to begin later this year on the Division’s property in northern Fayetteville off of Highway 112 South (Garland Avenue).

The second thornless primocane-fruiting blackberry released by the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture is the first of its kind to yield shipping-quality fruit suitable for commercial markets, said John R. Clark, director of the fruit breeding program.

The Big Creek Research and Extension Team has released its fourth quarterly report for 2014 on water and soil conditions near Big Creek, a major tributary to the Buffalo National River in Newton County. The team was originally commissioned by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe in late 2013 to monitor the area surrounding C&H Hog Farms, a large-scale swine concentrated feeding operation near Mount Judea.

The Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences Department is developing a modeling program to measure water quality for the southern region of the United States and is hosting a workshop on water quality modeling March 23.

Berry industry pros from around the country will be touring several University of Arkansas System horticultural research facilities this winter, as the 2015 North American Raspberry & Blackberry Conference convenes in Fayetteville Feb. 24-27.

Bringing in a microwave to dry harvested rice could do more than just get the job done faster. Researchers at the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture seek to use it to prevent cracking of dried rice kernels and maintain milling quality.

A new high-yield, high-protein conventional soybean variety from the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture makes an ideal choice for the animal feed market.
Division soybean breeder Pengyin Chen said the non-GMO soybean’s high protein content offers improved feed efficiency for poultry, beef and aquaculture producers.

World-renowned work in soybean breeding and genetics as well as the development of nitrogen soil testing for rice are among the accomplishments by faculty and staff who were honored Jan. 9 by the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture in partnership with the UA Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences. Ceremonies were held during a luncheon at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Rogers.

The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture has released its first soybean variety that features Roundup Ready® technology.
Division soybean breeder Pengyin Chen said the new variety, called UA 5414RR, offers the weed control advantages of Roundup Ready® soybeans without the added cost of technology fees.

Scientists at the Division of Agriculture have found that they can harness photosynthesis – the process that plants use to convert light energy to chemical energy – to increase rice yields by up to 30 percent. A research group led by Andy Pereira of the Crop, Soil, and Environmental Sciences Department faculty examined a protein that acts as a “switch” to activate genes that can enhance the photosynthesis activity of rice plants.

It could be called “Everything You Wanted to Know about Sustainable Strawberries but Were Afraid to Ask,” but this e-book’s secrets can be now be revealed through a single download. The e-book was grown from the minds behind the National Strawberry Sustainability Initiative, also known as NSSI.

The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture team researching water quality near a Newton County hog farm installed new monitoring equipment near manure holding ponds and had its work reviewed by an outside team of experts, according to its fourth quarterly report.

The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture fruit breeding program will expand its participation in the second phase of a USDA-funded research project to apply genetic marker technology to specialty crop breeding programs around the country.